Cosmic Threads
by Willow Mae
Summary: AU--New senshi, new villains, and a lot of angst. The Fourth Division of the Cosmic Senshi have their own problems in mind, and saving the universe isn't near the top of their list. But can this unlikely crew pull together before it's too late?
1. Thread 1

Disclaimer: The Sailormoon universe belongs to Naoko Takeuchi. This fic and all it's characters belong to me. Do not take their likenesses, names, or plot developments from me. If you do, I will hunt you down... :D  
  
Also, this fanfiction is rated PG-13, bordering on R, for a few reasons: implied situations, language, violence, and general gothic mood. You have now been warned, don't you come complaining to me if any of the above makes you uncomfortable!  
  
~~~  
  
During the age of the Silver Millennium, the Sol System was united in peace   
  
under the rule of the good and kind Queen Selenity of the Moon. But not   
  
just the solar system abided by the rule of the Moon Queen. The entire   
  
galaxy bowed to her will, each smaller system acting as smaller states   
  
under the federal rule. When the Silver Millennium fell, however, the   
  
galaxy was brought to ruination. Once united, now divided, each system   
  
retreated to its own individual rule. Broken beyond repair, exo-planetary   
  
travel ceased. The Sol System only managed to rebuild one planet...Earth.   
  
Other systems were not so lucky, and some died out altogether. The ones   
  
that did manage to retain one or two planets tried to recreate the beauty   
  
of the Millennium, but it was futile. Upsilon Andromedae, the only system   
  
to retain three of its original planets, did manage to unite a small group   
  
of the exo-systems into a vague mirror of the past, but it was nowhere near   
  
the same. Time passed, and slowly the Andromedae system pulled itself into   
  
a working order. All memory of the Silver Millennium was forgotten. Never   
  
again would the galaxy unite in such a way. Slowly, exo-planetary travel   
  
began again, though nowhere near as prominently as before. The galaxy was   
  
broken, true, but it was peaceful. Yet peace cannot survive without war,   
  
and it was only a matter of time before the galaxy would be tried against   
  
the hands of evil once again...  
  
***  
  
The station window looked out onto the vast desert that was Earth 314. The   
  
yellowed sand blew in raging storms across the dunes, obscuring the crater   
  
wall that surrounded the large city of Yisn. The girl standing inside the   
  
station leaned her face against the glass pane and closed her eyes,   
  
imagining the city, her home for the past seventeen years, with perfect   
  
clarity in her mind's eye. The brown, jagged walls of the crater reached   
  
their sharp fingers to the stormy sky to protect the city built at the   
  
bottom of the large hole from the violent winds of the planet. The teen   
  
pictured her house, a large adobe mansion near the center of the city, her   
  
window overlooking the streets and always left open in the heat. Standing   
  
in the shuttle station, gazing out the window in longing, the girl was a   
  
vision of piety, albeit a strange one. At eighteen years of age, the girl   
  
stood tall and proud, her slender figure dressed in high black leather   
  
boots, black shorts and a bright pink sports bra. Her chocolate colored   
  
hair was a spiky crown upon her head, while two long ponytails swung down   
  
her back and around her knees. Tears collected somewhere in her soul, but   
  
long ago they ceased to visit her cool grey eyes. She placed a slender hand   
  
on the window, forever engraving the image in her memory.  
  
"Departure flight to Earth 721 in Upsilon Andromedae now loading. Please   
  
enter into locking bay 4A with tickets readily available." A soft voice   
  
intoned over the speakers. The girl's eyes desperately searched through the   
  
gathering crowd of people at the dock, but they found no one.   
  
Disappointment clouded her eyes.  
  
"Xi," a deep voice called behind her. "Hurry up, it's time to go." With a   
  
sigh, the girl picked up the bag that lay at her feet and swung it over her   
  
shoulder, heading towards the man and woman who had called her name. The   
  
man wrapped his arm around her shoulder and Xi leaned against his chest for   
  
support. The woman rubbed the teen's arm affectionately.  
  
"I know you don't want to leave home, but your father and I need some time   
  
alone to work things out, and Upsilon has the best education process in our   
  
sector...Please don't think we don't love you, we'll miss you like mad. If   
  
all goes well, you'll be home by the end of the year, I promise." Xi nodded   
  
mutely to her mother's comforting words and nuzzled further into her   
  
father's chest. She felt silly, nearly an adult cowering like a babe in the   
  
arms of her parents, but leaving them was harder than expected, as was the   
  
thought of leaving her home planet.  
  
"Xiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!!" A shrill voice called through the crowd of people.   
  
Xi looked up hurriedly, and her eyes lit with happiness as she saw a figure   
  
racing towards her at top speed. Quickly she broke away from her father and   
  
dropped her bag, opening her arms as another girl leapt into them. This   
  
girl had nut brown hair that hung around her hips, plaited into hundreds of   
  
tiny braids all secured with colorful beads. Her olive skin was smooth and   
  
contrasted to her golden eyes, which were filling with tears as she hugged   
  
her best friend. In the centre of her forehead was a shining green bindi.   
  
Her clothing was loose and truly put her as one of the gypsy clans   
  
inhabiting the planet. A loose patchwork jacket was her main article of   
  
clothing, colorful and with the sleeves torn from it. The name embroidered   
  
on her bosom pronounced her as 'Tira'.   
  
"I didn't think you'd make it!" Xi exclaimed, burying her face in the   
  
girl's neck as the newcomer's brown braids tumbled onto her face. The girl   
  
chucked and squeezed Xi tightly.  
  
"I promised you I'd be here, Xi Lan, and I always keep my promises." The   
  
girl murmured, grinning broadly as she held Xi out in front of her. A look   
  
of sadness came into the girl's eyes. "But I didn't promise I wouldn't miss   
  
you. Here, I made this for you." She dug in her deep pockets and pulled out   
  
a small box that fit in the palm of her hand. Xi took it gently.  
  
"Oh Tira...I'm going to miss you so much." She felt the threatening lump in   
  
her throat, but quickly pushed it aside. It wouldn't do to be emotional   
  
now; she needed to stay strong. "I'll never find a best friend like you. I   
  
swear, I'll be back within the year." Tira grinned and pulled Xi into   
  
another hug. Xi could feel the gentle drop of tears on her shoulder.  
  
"Don't open it until you're on the flight. Promise me?" Tira choked out   
  
hrough her tears. Xi nodded mutely, hugging her best friend tightly. "It's   
  
something special, so you'll always remember me and so you can find me when   
  
you come back."   
  
"Final call for flight to Upsilon Andromedae, Earth 721. Final boarding   
  
call." Tira released her friend and wiped the tears from her eyes with the   
  
back of her hand.  
  
"That's you, huh." Xi nodded and tucked away the small present Tira had   
  
given her. "You have to write to me. I'll murder you if you don't." she   
  
laughed weakly.  
  
"Only if you write to me too. And keep my parents company, will you?   
  
They'll need a juvenile delinquent around every one and a while, just to   
  
keep them in line." The girls forced a laugh and Xi picked up her bag and   
  
walked towards the locking bay. She fiercely embraced her parents and gave   
  
them her final kisses before stepping onto the loading platform. Three   
  
figures watched sadly as she was loaded into the shuttle. Final waves were   
  
exchanged, and Xi found herself completely alone, for the first time in her   
  
life.   
  
She hated it.  
  
***  
  
Morgan O'Claire watched the people slowly boarding the shuttle. Tucking a   
  
clump of vibrant red shoulder-length curls behind her ear, she hunkered   
  
down in her seat and gazed out of the window at the vast expanses of sand,   
  
grimacing. So this was Earth 314. She was glad she was only staying for the   
  
cross flight. The thought of visiting, much less living in such a bleak   
  
place made her ill. The swirling green sky and grassy hills of her own home   
  
filled her mind and she avoided the morbid desert outside her window.  
  
"Please fasten all items as we prepare for liftoff." The stewardess' voice   
  
said cheerfully over the intercom system. "You will find earplugs in the   
  
compartment over your head. We advise you to use them, as traveling through   
  
the atmosphere is quite noisy and the absence of earplugs may result in   
  
hearing loss. When we have reached space, the captain will turn on the   
  
lights overhead as a signal that your earplugs are no longer needed. Thank   
  
you!"   
  
With bored motions, Morgan placed the plugs on her ears and waited for the   
  
liftoff. A few seats ahead of her, she noticed a girl about her age with   
  
spiky brown hair and long ponytails fumbling with the compartment lock. A   
  
look of determination was on her face as she pounded on the small door that   
  
was access to the earplugs. Morgan took off her earplugs, quickly undid her   
  
seatbelt and went over to the girl. With deft hands she popped open the   
  
compartment and handed the girl the plugs.  
  
"The locks are kinda touchy." Morgan said with a smile.  
  
"So I noticed." The girl said dryly, placing the plugs in her ears. With a   
  
nod, Morgan also placed her plugs back in, and all sound disappeared. The   
  
shuttle vibrated beneath her feet and she scurried back to her seat,   
  
buckling herself back in just as the shuttle began to take off. She leaned   
  
back into her seat, letting the cushions absorb most of the tremors of the   
  
take-off. After years of flying between home and Earth 721 she felt like a   
  
pro compared to some of the people on the ship. Morgan watched the girl   
  
ahead of her with interest. Everything in her manner was cool and   
  
collected, she didn't look phased by the take-off at all, yet Morgan could   
  
see by the grip she held on her armrest that this was her first time in   
  
space. A small smile played on her lips. She was beginning to like this   
  
girl already, though she couldn't exactly say why. Her cold mannerisms were   
  
completely in opposition to Morgan's own style.  
  
The takeoff didn't take long, and soon Morgan gazed out her window at Earth   
  
314, growing steadily smaller as the shuttle began its route to Earth 721.   
  
Morgan looked over at the girl, who was gazing steadily at the seat back in   
  
front of her. The redhead could sympathize with the stranger. The first   
  
time she left home on a shuttle, she was too stunned to realize the beauty   
  
of a flight through space. The overhead lights came on and Morgan took off   
  
her earplugs and went over to the girl again.  
  
"If you look out your window, you can see Earth. It always makes a lovely   
  
picture."  
  
"I realize that. I don't want to look. There is no need." Her cool grey   
  
eyes burned into Morgan's blue ones and Morgan looked away, feeling   
  
abashed. This was absurd! She had done nothing to deserve this girl's cold   
  
shoulder. Valiantly she pressed on.  
  
"My name's Morgan O'Claire." She held out her hand. The teen took it with a   
  
half smile and shook firmly.  
  
"Xi Lan."  
  
"That's an interesting name."  
  
"It's my name."  
  
"So you said." Morgan grinned, taking an empty seat beside Xi. "So why are   
  
you going to the Andromedae system? Or are you just taking a cross flight?"  
  
Xi looked at this cheerful girl and sighed. After going through so much,   
  
this girl wanted to talk about all her problems. Well fine, she'd talk.  
  
"My parents were having some troubles with each other and with me. It was   
  
decided that I should finish up my school term elsewhere. A very far   
  
elsewhere." Xi replied caustically.   
  
"Ouch." Morgan winced sympathetically. "Well, if it's any consolation, I'm   
  
going to visit my dad...my parents have been apart for the past few years   
  
and I guess being on the same planet was still too close for them." Morgan   
  
looked apologetically at Xi's impassive face. "Sorry, I guess I've said too   
  
much. Didn't mean to lecture you on my family history. Anyway, I'm sure   
  
things will work out eventually. They almost always do."  
  
"Not for you." Xi observed, cocking an eyebrow.   
  
"I don't like to dwell on the past. I'd rather dwell on the future." Morgan   
  
said with a shrug.  
  
"Dreamer."  
  
"Label me as you will." A smile passed between the two. Morgan chuckled.   
  
"Maybe I'll see you around when we get to Earth. It's mostly ocean, so   
  
there are only so many places a person can be."  
  
"Ocean..." Xi murmured, trying to picture it. Impossible.  
  
"You should try to nap." Morgan advised as she stood to return to her seat.   
  
"Normally first-flighters want to see the journey, but I assure you,   
  
jet-lag is a pain. It was nice meeting you, Xi."  
  
"And the same to you." Xi watched the other young woman retreat back to her   
  
seat. She looked out her window. Earth 314 was progressively getting   
  
smaller, and Xi smiled. Soon it would disappear into the blackness...maybe,   
  
it would take her with it. She settled back into her seat and tried to   
  
sleep.  
  
***  
  
The shuttle station on Earth 721 was directly joined to the airport, and   
  
hence was one of the busiest places in the city. It contained a small mall   
  
filled with overpriced souvenirs and plenty of food courts and bars. A   
  
young woman in her early twenties sat languidly at the bar, watching as the   
  
people walked by. In one hand she held an empty shot glass, in the other a   
  
lit cigarette. Both were purely for show. A smirk was attached firmly to   
  
the woman's face as she watched with satisfaction the reactions from those   
  
around her. Her bleached blonde hair hung around her shoulders and was   
  
streaked throughout with highlights the color of fresh blood. Her thick   
  
body was clothed in a torn red T-shirt and baggy black pants with multiple   
  
pockets. A wide variety of necklaces adorned her neck, selected to match   
  
the jeweled earrings in her lip, nose and eyebrow. On her arm a black   
  
knotted tattoo resided, curving over thick muscle. A pair of yellow tinted   
  
square sunglasses rested on her nose and her dark red eyes watched people   
  
over their tops. Multiple colored and silver bracelets jangled effectively   
  
on her arms as she watched the gates. She was going to arrive any moment;   
  
the woman could feel it.   
  
"Please stand clear, locking bay 17G is now opening. Flight 1064 from Earth   
  
314 now unloading." The young adult sat up straighter and focused her   
  
attention on the gates. Slowly the people began to file out, but the one   
  
she was looking for never appeared. A nearby flight of passengers walked   
  
through her line of vision. With an exasperated sigh, the woman strained   
  
her neck to see above the crowd when a passing flash of light blue caught   
  
her eye. Startled, woman focused her gaze on the passing crowd. There, the   
  
blue glow was apparent again. The woman quickly put out her unsmoked   
  
cigarette and hopped off her stool, shoving her way through the crowd   
  
towards the vision that only she could see. Was she really lucky enough to   
  
find both of them in one day? The color stopped moving, as it neared a side   
  
wall.  
  
There stood a girl on the verge of eighteen, looking lost and forlorn as   
  
she leaned unsteadily against the wall. She was short and bordering between   
  
huggable and plump. Skin a golden brown color, she appeared Asian, with   
  
silky black hair hanging straight down her back and bangs ruffling over her   
  
eyebrows. Her dark eyes were slightly hidden behind a large pair of glasses   
  
and her full lips were set in a worried frown as she hugged herself   
  
tightly. Behind her thin-rimmed glasses, she scanned the crowd anxiously.   
  
Her observer smiled and chewed on her lip ring as she thought a moment. The   
  
coloring around this girl was so faint, she wasn't sure if perhaps she was   
  
hallucinating. This shy, insecure girl was a great leader? However, with a   
  
pushy traveler bumped against the frightened girl, blue color flared around   
  
her entire figure. There was no question. The young woman approached her   
  
quickly, not forgetting that she still had another person to meet.  
  
"Hello there, my name is Astraea. I've been looking for you, Miss..." The   
  
girl looked up, startled, shy and frightened.  
  
"Oh excuse me." She said softly, pushing her glasses back upon her nose.   
  
"Are you the one I'm supposed to meet? A representative of my school was   
  
coming to meet me today..."  
  
Astraea grinned. This was easier than she had expected. She knew exactly   
  
how to ruse this girl.  
  
"That's me, I'm your representative." Astraea replied, the lie flowing   
  
smoothly. The girl's face washed with relief.  
  
"Thank goodness. My name is Tien Sao." A blush crept across her cheeks and   
  
she gazed down in shame. "Forgive me, you do not look as I suspected you   
  
would. Is your attire normal school wear? It's...different that what I   
  
believed after receiving the list sent to me..."   
  
Astraea cursed silently. She would have known that her eccentricity would   
  
startle such a shy creature.  
  
"Don't worry, the school does issue uniforms that are quite conservative."   
  
Astraea grinned. Tien's blush deepened.  
  
"I hope I haven't offended." She murmured. Astraea shook her head.  
  
"No, no, don't worry about it. I'm not actually directly associated with   
  
the school." She grabbed Tien's arm. The girl looked up in shock as Astraea   
  
dragged her through the crowds. She had just remembered why she was here in   
  
the first place.  
  
"Um, excuse me, Miss Astraea? Where are we going?" Tien asked as she   
  
followed behind the older woman.  
  
"I have someone else I need to pick up, I just hope we haven't missed her."   
  
She responded, shoving through people to get to gate and pulling Tien   
  
quickly behind her. She let go of Tien's arm when she stopped and yanked   
  
off her yellow glasses in frustration. Bay 17G was completely empty. "Shit,   
  
damn and fuck!" she cursed angrily, throwing her glasses on the floor.  
  
"Are you quite all right?" Tien asked, placing her hand upon her chest in a   
  
motion of shock and concern. "I take it the person you were to meet has not   
  
arrived?"   
  
"She's arrived, I can tell. I just missed her, that's all." Astraea sighed   
  
in frustration and picked up her glasses. She turned to Tien and smiled. "I   
  
can look for her as we head out. Let's get you back to the school so you   
  
can get situated." Tien gave a small smile and nod and Astraea shoved her   
  
hands in her pockets before heading towards the exit. Tien followed a short   
  
ways behind her.   
  
"Miss Astraea? Don't we need to go get my bags?" Tien pointed out as they   
  
neared the exit. Astraea cursed. She had forgotten. Playing trickster was   
  
harder than she imagined.   
  
"Of course, how silly of me." She turned towards the escalator that led   
  
down to the luggage collection area. "What gate did you come in from?"  
  
"Shouldn't you know that, seeing how you were sent to pick me up?" Tien   
  
asked softly. Astraea choked. The girl had pinned her again. She was no   
  
good at lying about this. Still, she had to do something to keep Tien from   
  
realizing that she wasn't a representative from school. Astraea was   
  
determined to keep this foreigner with her. She was about to respond when a   
  
bright flash of purple caught her eye. Someone was shouting angrily.  
  
"Hold that thought..." Astraea demanded, rushing into the gathering circle   
  
of people. "Go find your stuff and meet me back here!" she called over her   
  
shoulder to Tien. She elbowed her way to the front of the crowd and saw the   
  
source of the red flare... a young girl of eighteen with spiky brown hair   
  
and two long ponytails arguing with a guard. Beside her, a girl with red   
  
curls and an abundance of freckles tried to calm her down. It seemed to be   
  
working, and slowly the purple haze subsided into an almost invisible hue. In   
  
a huff, the girl shoved through the crowd. Astraea chased after her.  
  
"Wait! Hey you, I need to talk to you!" the hustle of the crowd was too   
  
much, however, and the girl was lost. Astraea bit her lip in irritation.   
  
Today was just not her day. Dejected, she went back to find Tien.  
  
***  
  
Circling the planet Saturn was the icy moon of Titan. Cruel winds blew   
  
across the rocky surface, sending piercing shards of ice in violent winds   
  
across the moon. Not a soul was present.  
  
Yet under the surface, a network of caves contained three prominent life   
  
forms. The Gorgon sisters were triplets, three women with cold green eyes   
  
and blonde hair. The eldest was Queen Regina, who sat upon her throne of   
  
ice with a cold expression, her blonde hair curling around her feet and a   
  
crown of stone upon her head. She and her sisters were watching a pool   
  
filled with water at her feet, encased by a circle of ice stalagmites. The   
  
water flickered with colorful images, and the triplets watched the show   
  
with dark emerald eyes. Then the images disappeared and Regina turned to   
  
her sisters.  
  
"So you see how we cannot yet win a battle in the Sol System. The Sailor   
  
Senshi are too powerful yet. We need target practice." The middle woman   
  
stood by her sister's throne. She wore leather breeches and a tunic, her   
  
hair pulled away on the sides by two strands of leather that crossed over   
  
each other, forming two wraps by her ears. The rest of her hair was cut   
  
short partially past her shoulders, and she tossed a blade back and forth   
  
between her hands.  
  
"We could take them, Sister! You're too cautious!" she growled, snatching   
  
her blade from its flight and jabbing it angrily into the wall. The third   
  
triplet giggled childishly on the floor.  
  
"Amazonia thirsts for battle..." She rocked slowly on the stairs as she   
  
toyed with her ragged blonde hair that hung in matted clumps around her   
  
ears. "Blood to drink, blood to smell, blood, blood, blood..." she giggled   
  
again and gazed up at her sisters with a devilish smile. Amazonia glared at   
  
her and yanked the blade from the wall.  
  
"Shut your trap, Iaia." She snarled, raising the knife menacingly. Iaia   
  
giggled again, stuffed her fist in her mouth and continued to rock as she   
  
grinned like a mad cheshire cat.   
  
"You'll have your battle soon enough, Amazonia." Queen Regina replied   
  
coolly, stoking Iaia's hair as the youngest triplet leaned against her leg.   
  
"I have chosen a system void of senshi to conquer first. They will fall   
  
quickly, but not without a fight."  
  
"And where exactly is this system you speak of, dear Sister?"   
  
"The babes will weep, the mothers die, and on the blood-soaked ground I'll   
  
lie..." Iaia twittered in a singsong voice. The other two ignored her.   
  
Regina waved a hand at the pool and the picture shifted to a three-planet   
  
system.  
  
"Upsilon Andromedae."  
  
***  
  
"I'm sorry sir, I did not see here when I went to pick her up." The young   
  
woman's voice remained calm where normally worry would reside.   
  
"Perhaps you missed the flight, Miss LeGruin. It won't look good on our   
  
records when a student goes missing." The masculine voice was filled with   
  
authority.  
  
"No sir. I understand sir. I shall return to the station if you like." The   
  
two speakers were in the main office of Thadeus Quincy Academy, the most   
  
elite school in the sector under Upsilon Andromedae. The school taught   
  
students up to the age of 21, far longer than any other school, yet the   
  
extra schooling was well worth it. The walls of the office were white and   
  
mostly bare, save for a few select awards of achievement mounted   
  
strategically over the principal's desk.   
  
The principal himself sat in his chair, his hands folded neatly upon his   
  
desk. His hair was slicked back and his suit crisp and spotless. He was   
  
speaking to third year student Cecelia LeGruin. She wore the TQ Academy   
  
uniform, with her pleated forest green skirt hanging neatly around her   
  
knees and her green vest was buttoned over a short white blazer. Her   
  
lavender hair was pulled into two large buns on either side of her head and   
  
long tendrils of loose hair hung by her ears and fell around her mid-torso.  
  
"Don't worry about it, Miss LeGruin. The day is nearly over. You may return   
  
to your dorm if you wish, there is little point in return to final classes.   
  
I shall have one of the staff look into the matter later on." The principal   
  
nodded her dismissal.  
  
"Thank you sir. I'm sorry to cause such trouble, sir." Cecelia bowed and   
  
left the office. The halls of the Academy were empty save for a few   
  
wandering students, and her shoes echoed on the stone floor. Cecelia gazed   
  
out the long rows of windows at the expanse of ocean crashing against the   
  
beach that surrounded three quarters of the academic building. The golden   
  
shine of the setting sun glimmered brightly on the water. Cecelia entered   
  
her dorm building and calmly climbed the three flights of stairs to her   
  
room. As she approached the door sounds of giggles and rough laughter   
  
floated towards her.  
  
She opened the door with a sigh and glanced around. The normally clean room   
  
was littered with half empty drinks, opened bags of chips, dirty laundry,   
  
and an abundance of dirty dishes. Cecelia leaned down and picked up a   
  
freshly discarded blouse and cocked an eyebrow. In the center of the room   
  
with a deck of cards was her roommate Erica Johannson. Her blonde hair hung   
  
around her bare shoulders and her blue eyes squinted with giggles. Her   
  
shoes and socks were tossed to various corners of the room, and her vest   
  
lay recently crumpled beside her. Her large chest bounced as she laughed   
  
gaily, barely contained by the black lacy bra she wore. All that Cecelia   
  
could think was that she was at least still wearing that bra, as well as   
  
her skirt. Across from Erica sat Dean "Castor" Castor, another student in   
  
their class. His shirt had been removed as well. Both held cards in their   
  
hands.  
  
"Honestly, you two." Cecelia groaned as she began picking up the mess. "You   
  
had quite a party in my absence, I see."  
  
"Hey Cece!" Erica greeted her roommate joyously, waving her cards. "We're   
  
playing strip poker, wanna join?"   
  
"No." Cecelia cast a look of displeasure over her shoulder. Dean laughed.  
  
"Of course she doesn't. She just doesn't strike me as the type, don't you   
  
agree Erica?" Erica laughed again and bounced flirtatiously.   
  
"No, I suppose you're right."  
  
"Well congratulations, you read me right." Cece smiled. "I don't want to   
  
play, and I'd rather you play somewhere else. Skipping class to play poker?   
  
How you two got into TQ I have no idea."  
  
"Ouch, that was harsh." Dean mocked offense. "I think you're just afraid to   
  
lose as badly as Erica is losing."  
  
"I think she wants to lose." Cece chuckled. "She's a master when we play   
  
regular poker."  
  
Erica's mouth opened into a perfect 'o' as she batted her eyes. "Castor,   
  
she's lying! Playing regular poker is an entirely different matter!"   
  
"You always play to win!" Cece laughed, tossing the garbage into a large   
  
plastic bag. "Even now, I see, I was mistaken. I guess you really aren't   
  
losing..."  
  
"I'm offended." Erica mocked. She stood and grabbed Castor's hand, dragging   
  
him to his feet as well. "Come on, let's go back to your dorm. I'm sure   
  
we'll get a better reception there." She headed for the door, but Cecelia   
  
tossed the blazer and vest across her path.  
  
"You might want to get dressed first, in case any teachers see you." She   
  
recommended. Still faking a huff, Erica and Castor quickly dressed   
  
themselves and headed for the door again. "Don't get too naughty, you two."   
  
Cece called as they left. Erica leaned her head back in and blew her a kiss   
  
before finally ducking out.   
  
Cecelia shook her head. The campus playboy and playgirl-- they could never   
  
get enough. With a sigh, Cecelia returned to tidying the small dorm room.   
  
Her friends were all play and no work, as made obvious by their adventures.   
  
She, on the other hand, was the ideal image of perfection. She studied   
  
hard, kept her grades, and for it she was near the top of her class. She   
  
was involved in the Student Government program and had recently been   
  
elected Vice President. The teachers respected her, younger students   
  
admired her, and it seemed as though to school had been created simply to   
  
teach her. With all those high expectations, there was no room for fun in   
  
her life. ~ All work and no play makes Cece one dull chica. ~ Cecelia   
  
thought morbidly. She needed a cigarette. 


	2. Thread 2

"Come on Xi, there's my dad. I want to introduce you to him." Morgan   
exclaimed, pointed across the crowed terminal to a tall man looking through   
the crowd. His red-brown curls tried vainly to escape from beneath the   
large khaki cap he wore. He was dressed like an explorer and even carried a   
large camera around his neck, only furthering the image to a truth.   
  
"I really should be going, I'm going to miss my bus." Xi protested. She   
didn't know why she was still with the girl from the shuttle. There was no   
place for her on this planet of water. There was no place for her anywhere.   
Xi was alone. She would take care of herself using the money her parents   
had sent with her, but the fact remained that solitude remained her only   
companion. Yet for some reason, Morgan brought a warmth into her life like   
never before. All the threads of anger that had filled her soul since her   
departure from her previous life seemed to drain away in Morgan's cheery   
presence. And so the teen found herself being dragged towards the man, who   
upon their approach opened his arms and embraced Morgan in a great hug.  
  
"Hey there kiddo, missed you." The man rumbled as he squeezed Morgan. The   
girl laughed and broke away.  
  
"I missed you too. Dad, I'd like you to meet Xi Lan. I met her on the   
shuttle." Xi smiled hesitantly in acknowledgement, but Mr. O'Claire grasped   
her hand a shook it warmly.  
  
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Xi." Mr. O'Claire grinned, his eyes   
twinkling. "What brings you to Earth 721?"  
  
"School." Xi replied simply. It wasn't necessary to go in to all the   
unpleasant details that accompanied her arrival. "It was a pleasure to meet   
you, Mr. O'Claire, but if I'm to catch my bus to Thadeus Quincy Academy,   
then I really must be going. I wouldn't want to get lost on my way..." she   
hurriedly backed out. The sooner she could be alone, the better.   
  
"You're going to TQ? Well, that's where Morgan goes too, why don't you come   
over and have dinner with us before checking the campus?"  
  
"But the bus..." Xi protested. She was quickly being cornered.  
  
"Oh, come over to dinner. It'd be sad if you were eating alone. Besides, we   
live close to the school, we'll take you over so you can settle in your   
dorm later."  
  
Xi found herself being ushered from the shuttle station and taken home with   
the O'Claire's.   
  
***  
  
Astraea watched the road carefully as she drove Tien away from the shuttle   
station and airport. As usual, the roads were clogged and process was slow.   
Thoughts jetted across her mind ass he tried to think of what to do next,   
now that she had Tien with her. Should she bring the girl to TQ Academy?   
She wasn't sure if that was the school Tien was supposed to attend, but it   
was the only major school on the island. Maybe she would take the girl back   
to her apartment and explain everything...but no, the girl was already   
timid enough, the truth would be overly shocking.  
  
"Miss Astraea, tell me about the school." Tien requested politely, though   
her voice was not as shy as it had been. Astraea chewed on her lip ring   
again. Tien certainly had a way of keeping her on her toes. She thought   
quickly.  
  
"Well, it's generally nice. The campus is lovely and the teachers are   
helpful. It's just a school." She knew she was being vague, but it would be   
trouble to slip. Tien, unfortunately, caught her.  
  
"You're being vague. Why is that?"  
  
"What would you have me say?" Astraea laughed, though her knuckles whitened   
as she gripped the steering wheel. Tien watched her carefully before   
speaking again.  
  
"I'd have you say who you really are, for starters." She replied quietly.  
  
"What do you mean? I told you, my name is Astraea and I'm a representative   
from--"  
  
"You're not the TQ Academy representative." Tien black eyes watched for a   
reaction behind their lenses. "I can tell. You needn't bother pretending   
further. I still would like to know what you intend to do with me, please,   
since you did go through the trouble of kidnapping me."  
  
"Wha...what??" Astraea nearly choked, causing her to lose focus on the road   
and nearly hit the car in front of her. Astraea was determined to keep the   
façade going. "Kidnapped you? What makes you think I'm not the   
representative from your school? Honestly, there is no trust these days..."  
  
"I never said I didn't trust you. I went with you, after all, even though I   
knew you were lying. Does that not show trust?" Tien protested. Defeated,   
Astraea relaxed and focused once more on driving. One glance at Tien showed   
that her blue aura was fizzling around her. Astraea pushed her yellow   
glasses up on her nose and smirked. Perhaps it wasn't a mistake that Tien   
was a leader. At last she decided to bring the foreigner back to her   
apartment and explain to her, but first she had some questions of her own.  
  
"How did you know? I mean, how could you tell I was lying?"  
  
"I watched you. Don't get me wrong, you were good, but I'm an excellent   
observer." Tien smiled in satisfaction. "You weren't looking for me, yet   
you introduced yourself. You took my words to your advantage. Your clothing   
gave you away the most. I had been told to look for a person wearing a   
school uniform and TQ on their jacket. You didn't count on the fact that I   
would be aware of who was coming for me. Would you like me to continue to   
name your faults?"  
  
"Please." Astraea offered, only half mocking. "This is quite fascinating."  
  
"There was the way you forgot my bags and didn't know my gate number, the   
way you chewed on your lip ring every time I asked about school, and there   
was your vagueness in the car here. I knew you weren't who you said you   
were."  
  
"So explain something to me, Miss Sao." Astraea mused as she turned onto   
her home street. "If you knew I was lying to you, why did you come with   
me?"  
  
"For the adventure." Tien replied, so softly Astraea had to strain to hear   
her. "I've always been so shy and boring, I wanted a change..."  
  
"Well, don't you worry, you'll get your adventure." Astraea muttered darkly   
to herself. She pulled the car into a parking garage. "Come on, I'm taking   
you to my apartment. I need your help. After I've explained some things to   
you, I promise to take you back to TQ Academy so no one gets worried. I'm   
not a bad person, you know."  
  
"I know that too. I watched you."   
  
With a smile, Astraea led the younger teen up the stairs to her apartment.   
The building was old and worn down, the stairs creaking mournfully as   
though they were about to break if any more weight was laid upon their   
tired bodies. The wallpaper in the halls was yellowed and peeling and the   
colorful carpet had long since faded to a ratty collage of brown. Tien   
looked about her as Astraea led her towards her apartment. The girl wrapped   
her arms around herself protectively and stayed close behind Astraea, who   
was currently scarping her keys along the doorframe in search of the   
keyhole. With a click and a squeal, the door swung in and Astraea led Tien   
into her apartment. The sight that met the teen's eyes was even more   
saddening than the halls. Water stains littered the ceiling in the same   
manner as books and papers littered the floor. The carpet peeled up in the   
corner and had worn thin to the hardwood floor beneath it in some places.   
Astraea led Tien past the small kitchenette, where the faucet dripped   
steadily onto a large stack of dirty dishes. The living quarters behind the   
counter were just as bad as the rest of the apartment. With awkward   
hospitality, Astraea shoved a pile of papers from the couch to the floor   
and motioned towards the faded, dusty couch.  
  
"Well, have a seat." She hazarded a grin before crossing behind the counter   
into the kitchenette as Tien perched herself on the edge of the couch.   
"Would you like anything to eat or drink before I start explaining?" Tien   
looked down at herself and then at the kitchen before responding.  
  
"No, thank you." Tien said politely. Astraea shrugged and yanked open the   
refrigerator, which whirred angrily and whose yellow light flickered as the   
young woman pulled out a bottle. She slammed the door shut and popped the   
top of the bottle on the counter before returning to the living quarters.   
She pulled out a chair and straddled it, leaving her arms hanging over the   
back as she watched Tien and took a swig of her drink. Noticing Tien's   
expression, Astraea smirked.  
  
"Root beer. Good shit." Tien nodded and smiled. Astraea took another drink   
and sighed, eyeing Tien over her yellow sunglasses. "Where to begin...well,   
take a look at that pile at your feet." Tien did as she was asked and   
flipped through one of the many piles at her feet. Her eyebrows crinkled   
and she took off her glasses and polished them before looking at the pile   
again. With a puzzled gaze, she looked back to Astraea.  
  
"Fairytales? You kidnapped me to tell me about fairytales?"  
  
"For one, I did not kidnap you, per say. And they aren't fairytales,   
they're legends. True legends." Excited, Astraea stood and gathered a few   
piles from around the cluttered apartment and shoved them into Tien's lap.   
  
"Legends aren't true, that's why they're legends." Tien responded   
logically. Astraea shook her head.  
  
"This is different. The Sailor Senshi and Shittenou; saviors of the galaxy.   
When evil arises, they save the world, time and again. They're still   
around, just look through all those papers. It's my research." Astraea   
urged. Tien placed the papers on the cluttered coffee table in front of her   
and folded her hands in her lap.  
  
"I know the entire bedtime story, Miss Astraea, but if you are so certain   
that they are still around then tell me why no one has heard of them."  
  
"Because there is no evil in the galaxy to call them forth." Astraea felt   
like she was explaining things to a child. It was all so simple and clear   
to her, but Tien just smiled that soft smile of hers.  
  
"I can understand how you might desire them to be real, but this is not   
proof. This is just speculation, all of this." She gestured to the piles   
around her. "And while I appreciate you sharing this obsession with me, I   
don't see how it relates to *me* specifically."   
  
Silence. Then slowly, a smile spread across Astraea's face as she looked   
deeply at Tien. The other girl shifted uncomfortably under the woman's gaze   
until at last, Astraea broke the silence.  
  
"It relates to you, specifically, because you are one of them." This time   
it was Tien's turn to create the silence. At last she hazarded an   
uncomfortable laugh.  
  
"Don't be ridiculous. It's crazy. You're crazy!" She rose and tried to make   
her way towards the door but Astraea grasped her shoulders and looked hard   
into Tien's dark eyes.  
  
"Listen to me. You observed me and knew that I was lying. Am I lying now?"   
Tien hastily shook her head. "Right. You watched me and knew I was a good   
person. I'm not lying to you, Tien. Those papers may have been speculation,   
true, but I can prove to you that this entire episode is more than that.   
It's a truth, Miss Sao. If you help me find the others, then you can see   
for yourself. But you must trust me."  
  
"I said I trusted you...I suppose I still do..." Tien murmured, not daring   
to break away from Astraea's gaze. Slowly, Astraea released her with a nod.  
  
"I'm glad to hear it. If you will do exactly as I say, then you will begin   
to see the proof I have to offer you. If you will sit back down, please..."   
she guided Tien back to the old couch. "Have you ever meditated before?"  
  
"No, but I'm familiar with the process." Astraea shrugged.  
  
"It'll have to do. Now, go into the meditative state, and when you're there   
look far into your soul. You should something like a lightswitch there that   
you must turn on." Tien raised an eyebrow.  
  
"A lightswitch?"   
  
"Metaphorically speaking. It should be clear when you reach that point what   
you must do. Just give it a try, I'm explain as best I can." With one final   
disbelieving glance at Astraea, Tien closed her eyes and tried to meditate.   
Astraea sat back and watched her carefully. Time inched by. Astraea started   
counting the number of drips from her faucet, but lost interest around 694   
drips. At last, Tien opened her eyes and blinked.  
  
"Everything is so bright...why are you sparkling?" Astraea sighed in   
relief.   
  
"Glad to see it worked. I may be sparkling, but take a look at yourself,   
Tien." She urged.  
  
"Why am I glowing blue?"  
  
"It is your proof that you are one of the Senshi destined to protect   
against evil. You are Sailor Centaurus, Second in Command to the Fourth   
Division of the Cosmic Senshi. Quite a title, huh?" Astraea said solemnly.   
"I am guardian and advisor to your division, and it is my task to reawaken   
you and the others so that you can fight the evil that is fast approaching   
the system. Is this going to fast for you?"  
  
"Fight? Oh my, I think I need to sit down..." Tien murmured, still gazing   
at the light blue glow that fizzled around her.  
  
"You are sitting." Astraea commented. "But I'll get you a glass of water if   
you like."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
"I know this is quite a lot to take in, I realize that. I had troubles   
believing it myself, when my memories first came back. It was interesting,   
like I had been hit on the head and all sorts of repressed memories of the   
past filled my mind. But I also know that it is necessary to hurry. Now   
that you can see the auras as well, you must help me find the other five.   
Only when you are together can you transform, and the danger is quick in   
coming." Astraea handed Tien a tall glass of water and smiled. "I'd take   
you back to TQ now, but it's late and I don't think the admissions office   
would be open. You can sleep in my room and think things over in peace and   
I'll take you in tomorrow."  
  
"Yes..." Gently, Astraea led the shocked teen into her room, which was   
thankfully cleaner than other parts of the small apartment and let Tien   
fall peacefully onto the squeaky mattress to sleep.  
  
***  
  
Cecelia perched on the windowsill, gazing out across the endless sea to   
where the water had nearly finished swallowing the sun. Her eyes cast once   
more down to the book she held in her hand, and she recited the words for   
what seemed like the hundredth time.  
  
" ' This is the iron sea.   
No sea for gentle ripples.  
No sea for carefree sails.  
Rust-red jaws  
barely hidden   
sharpest teeth  
just under the keel.  
This is the iron sea  
without seaweed and small creatures.   
This is the northern sea  
used to hard against hard.   
Every evening the sea gulps.  
Fireball glows and hisses  
rallies courage to go under.   
This is the iron sea   
that wants the cold. '  
  
'The sun's grave' by Solveig von Schoultz." Cecelia flicked off the snake   
of ash at the end of her cigarette and leaned against the windowpane.  
  
"Hey Cece, I'm back!" Erica called happily from the doorway. She came into   
the room and plucked the cigarette from between Cecelia's fingers and   
happily crushed it into the ashtray. "How many times have I told you that's   
unhealthy?" she scolded with a smile. Cece sighed and changed the subject.  
  
"Did you and Castor have a pleasant time?"  
  
"Oh yes, but I'm exhausted!" Erica caught the look on Cecelia's face and   
giggled. "We didn't do anything bad, honest! We just played around for a   
bit, that's all."  
  
"I think you play around too much." Cece rose from the windowsill and   
crossed to where Erica was dressing for bed. "I hope you're not too tired   
to finish that paper that's due tomorrow." Erica froze.  
  
"Oh yeah, I forgot about that...oh well. I guess I'll just hand it in   
late." With a shrug, Erica snuggled deep under her covers. Cecelia sighed   
again.  
  
"Well, it's your choice, I suppose. Goodnight then." She smiled and changed   
into her own nightgown and curled on her bunk to sleep. The stars twinkled   
brightly through the window, shifting slowly though the ebony sky until at   
last the faint wisps of pink signaled the dawning of a new day. Cecelia   
found herself being rudely awoken to the shrieks of Erica.  
  
"I have a paper due today!"   
  
Cecelia sat up groggily and nearly hit her head against the ceiling. She   
hated being on the top bunk...she looked over the rail down upon Erica's   
blonde head frantically sifting through the messy desk that belonged to   
her.  
  
"Wonderful, Watson." Cecelia muttered, swinging her legs over the edge of   
the bed and jumping lightly to the floor. "I warned you last night."   
  
"I know, I know...quiet, I must think!" Erica grabbed a pencil and held it   
high over her head, a pensive look on her face. Cece watched her in   
interest, and couldn't help laughing when Erica dropped the pencil and fell   
forward onto her desk. "It's not funny, Cece. I'm doomed..."  
  
"Here, use this." Cecelia took a paper from the neat desk directly next to   
Erica's and handed it to her frustrated friend. "I used your notes and   
looked at previous papers you've written to copy the style. It's not the   
best paper ever, but at least you won't get docked points." Slowly, Erica   
raised her head and gingerly took the paper from her roommates outstretched   
hand.  
  
"You could get in so much trouble for this, it'd spoil your reputation!"   
She protested, though her blue eyes scanned the pages eagerly. Cecelia   
snorted and her green eyes darkened momentarily.  
  
"To hell with my reputation. This is for a friend." She grinned. "Besides,   
I was bored last night, all by myself."  
  
"You should've played poker with us." Erica giggled, throwing her arms   
around Cecelia and crushing the girl to her chest. "I love you Cece, you're   
such a great friend! Now mush, we must get to class."   
  
Cecelia quickly pulled her lavender hair back into its usual buns and   
curling hairs, while Erica brushed her own hair and applied generous   
amounts of makeup. Cecelia sighed as her roommate examined each individual   
eyelash to make sure there was enough mascara on it.  
  
"I thought you wanted to get to class on time." She grabbed her friend's   
hand and Erica squealed as she was dragged from the room and out to the   
campus, where the two girls made their way to the academic wing. Erica   
giggled and waved at every passing male while Cecelia gave a resigned sigh   
and pulled Erica into their first period class. The teacher looked up from   
her desk and saw the girls.  
  
"Oh, Miss LeGruin, the Dean of Admissions would like to see you before   
class. Don't worry if your late, I know you'll be able to catch up."   
Cecelia nodded and turned to say goodbye to Erica, who was already flirting   
with Dean Castor again. With a shrug, she left her friend to her devices   
and made her way from the classroom to the Dean's office. She knocked on   
the door and let herself in. The Dean was a slight woman with short brown   
curls and wide framed glasses. Like the rest of the administrators in the   
school, she was primly dressed and kept a neat office. She smiled up at   
Cecelia from her seat behind her desk.  
  
"Ah, Miss LeGruin. I'm so glad you could come down. Please, be seated." She   
motioned to one of the three chairs opposite the desk. Cecelia was about to   
sit when she realized that two of the chairs had already been filled. One   
girl slouched back in her chair, her arms folded across her chest. Her hair   
had been spiked and two long ponytails hung along the floor. In the school   
uniform, she looked more like a punk than a student. In the other chair sat   
a larger girl, who had clasped her hands in her lap and was examining them   
intently. Her jet-black hair hung elegantly over her shoulder and her bangs   
brushed against the top of her glasses. Cecelia took the empty chair and   
folded her hands in her lap. The Dean continued with a charming smile. "The   
Principal and I had a discussion last night, it would appear we have found   
your missing student, Miss Sao. It seems she went home with the wrong   
person by mistake. No harm done, I suppose. We also have another transfer   
student, Miss Lan, who will be entering the second year. I was hoping that   
you could find time to show them both around the campus and be their   
guide."  
  
"I thought it was customary to find a student from the person's own year to   
show them around if they were not a first year student. Ma'am." Cecelia   
protested politely. She didn't have the time to deal with two new   
girls...the Dean was about to say something when the girl with the spiky   
hair spoke.  
  
"I'm fine with that." She looked at Cecelia and raised an eyebrow, as if   
realizing that the older girl was not interested in taking her on a guided   
tour. "I've already got someone I know in the second year, I'll have her   
show me around."  
  
"Who is that, Miss Lan?" The Dean asked. The other girl looked up and   
watched the situation carefully while Cecelia sat back.  
  
"Her name's Morgan." The Dean looked at her blankly, a half-smile of   
encouragement on her face. The girl raised her eyebrows. "Morgan O'Claire?   
Geez, you don't even know your own students...well, she's a second year and   
she already said she's willing to show me around, okay?"  
  
Cecelia chucked softly. No one had such an attitude around the Academy, it   
was a welcome change. She glanced at the other girl to see her reaction,   
only to discover the girl's slanted eyes scrutinizing bother her and Miss   
Lan. Cecelia wasn't sure what it was about the way Miss Sao was looking at   
her that made her feel so unnerved, but she quickly looked away and back to   
the Dean.  
  
"I admit that it is standard protocol, but I assure you that Miss LeGruin   
is a very capable girl..." Cecelia felt her temper flare momentarily. If   
the girl didn't want her escort, that was fine. She didn't need to   
responsibility forced upon her, and she told the Dean as much, in a far   
politer fashion.  
  
"If Miss Lan would rather have her friend escort her, that's quite all   
right with me. I'll have more than my share showing Miss Sao around." The   
Dean watched the three girls silently for a moment before nodding.  
  
"Very well then, you are dismissed. Miss LeGruin, I shall inform the rest   
of your teachers that you will not be attending today so that you can show   
Miss Sao around. You may be dismissed." The three girls stood and made for   
the door. "Oh and Miss Lan, I would watch your attitude around here. It   
could get you into trouble very quickly." The girl shut the door behind her   
in a huff. Once in the hallway, she turned to the others.  
  
"Well, I could say it's been a pleasure meeting you two, but since I'll   
never see you again I won't. Have a good time on your tour." She turned on   
her heels and sauntered down the hall, her long ponytails swinging around   
her ankles. Cecelia turned to her charge.  
  
"To be honest, I'm almost glad I won't be seeing her again..." she stopped   
speaking when she noticed how the girl was watching Miss Lan as she walked   
away. It was that same unnerving stare that she had used in the office.   
  
"Um, hello?"  
  
"She glows purple..." the girl whispered, taking a few steps to follow the   
girl but then hesitated and stopped.  
  
"Excuse me?" Cecelia asked. This girl was very strange. The sooner this   
tour was over, the more at ease she'd feel. "Well, let's go pick up your   
class schedule and get started. My name's Cecelia, and you are?" The girl   
looked at her and smiled, that unnerving stare gone.  
  
"Tien. It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Cecelia." Cecelia smiled back and   
began to lead Tien to the office to pick up her schedule.   
  
"Ah, Miss LeGruin! Pleasure to see you. What can I help you with?" The   
secretary in the office smiled pleasantly as the girls entered.   
  
"We need Miss Tien Sao's schedule. I'm showing her around school today."  
  
"You're such a good student, Miss LeGruin! Yet another good deed to add to   
your list...give me one moment and I'll it up in the database." The   
secretary turned to his computer.  
  
"It'll be just a moment Tien...." she was staring again. "What is it? Why   
do you keep looking at me like that?" Cecelia demanded, a little more   
irritated than she meant to sound.  
  
"Here you go ladies, have a wonderful day!"  
  
"Thank you sir." Cecelia snatched the paper and looked at Tien suspiciously   
before taking her back into the academic wing.  
  
"Forgive me for staring so strangely..." Tien began quietly, not sure how   
to begin. "I wasn't sure at first, since it was so faint, but when you   
became agitated I saw it clearer..."  
  
"What are you going on about?" Cecelia stopped leading the girl down the   
hallway to look at her.   
  
"You were, um, glowing." Tien mumbled. "Red. I wasn't sure, but then it   
flared and I'm positive, I think..."  
  
"Glowing?" Cecelia snorted. "That's the silliest thing I've heard."  
  
"I don't know how to begin...let's see. Do you know the fairytale legend   
about the Sailor Senshi?"  
  
"Sure. Everyone knows that, it's a classic bedtime tale. Why?" Cecelia   
wondered just what this strange girl was trying to say.  
  
"Oh, I wish Miss Astraea was here..." Tien said, hugging herself tightly.   
"Miss Cecelia, I have quite an extraordinary tale to tell you..." 


	3. Thread 3

Amazonia prowled about her chamber, her lovely face contorted with frustration   
  
and rage. Her body tensed with action, she whirled madly when a masculine   
  
voice spoke from the doorway.  
  
"My lady, what troubles you?" The man leaned against the wall suavely and   
  
watched the middle princess with cool hazel eyes. He was tall and muscular,   
  
dressed like a prince in blacks and greys. Hair the color of forest moss   
  
framed his lean, handsome face and had been pulled into a tight ponytail at   
  
the nape of his neck. He was Lord Mathus, servant to the Gorgons and   
  
high-ranking warrior general to their troops. As soon as Amazonia caught sight   
  
of him she lunged into battle.  
  
"Lord Mathus! Defend yourself." The man quickly blocked her attack and   
  
countered it with one of his own, pushing himself from the wall and spinning   
  
away from Amazonia's next attack. The two raged through the chamber with a   
  
series of punches and kicks until they both panted and their clothing clung to   
  
them with sweat. Amazonia rushed at Mathus once more but he caught her punch   
  
in his hand and twisted her arm behind her, bringing her into a lock against   
  
his chest. They both stood silently for a moment, their breath heavy.   
  
Mathus leaned his chin on the princess's head and murmured sweetly into her   
  
tangled blonde hair. "My princess, what troubles you?" Amazonia didn't   
  
respond, but instead twisted free of his grasp and grabbed his head with her   
  
hands. She spun to face him and brought his lips to meet hers in a fierce   
  
kiss. Still clutching his head, she bore her eyes into his.  
  
"Regina is too cautious." She snarled, dark eyes flashing. "I want to destroy.   
  
Find me something to destroy, Mathus." She demanded, grabbing his tunic and   
  
crushing him to her once more. "Find me a planet to destroy, else I shall   
  
destroy you..." Mathus smirked at her hollow threat and ran his fingers   
  
through her sweaty blonde hair.  
  
"My princess, I believe I have just the answer." Amazonia looked up at him   
  
greedily, bloodlust shining in her emerald eyes. "You are aware of that fact   
  
that Regina wishes to conquer the Upsilon Andromedae system. You should also   
  
know that the system is a central government, extending its powers to many   
  
minor planets across the sector. On the outskirts of the sector is a small,   
  
nearly deserted planet. Destroy this planet, my lady, and give Andromedae   
  
something to worry about." Amazonia licked her lips devilishly and chuckled.  
  
"I *like* it. What is this planet? I wish to leave at this moment."  
  
"Earth 314, located in the constellation Vela." Mathus frowned. "It is a long   
  
distance. I should accompany you--" Amazonia silenced him with a deadly glare.  
  
"You will stay out of my affairs unless I ask you to become involved." She   
  
hissed. "I shall return this evening, once this planet has fallen to my   
  
frustrations. I expect to see you in my bedchambers when I return."  
  
"Of course, my princess." Mathus replied solemnly, keeping the glimmer of   
  
satisfaction from his smile. Amazonia gave a nod of satisfaction before   
  
gathering her energy and transporting herself to Earth 314. Lord Mathus   
  
watched her body fade away into the air before turning on his heels and   
  
exiting the chamber.  
  
"The air whispers of foul play from lords and ladies..." a soft voice giggled   
  
from the floor. Mathus cast his gaze down and saw the youngest of the trio   
  
curled at the doorway of her sister's room.   
  
"Princess Iaia." Mathus bowed respectfully to the young woman, though there   
  
was obviously no respect in the motion. Her eyes widened and she giggled,   
  
twirling her hands around each other as her fingers intertwined as though with   
  
a life of their own.  
  
"Foul, foul, foul...it doesn't like being cornered, oh no, does it?" she set   
  
her eyes steadily on Mathus, who quickly looked elsewhere to keep from meeting   
  
that wild gaze. Her fingers continued to wrap around each other and through   
  
her matted hair. "The youngest knows, not yet the eldest, but if it were to be   
  
how would it deal? If the ladies were to know the truth of the lords, how   
  
would it deal, how would it deal..."  
  
"My lady, perhaps you should return to your quarters." Lord Mathus extended a   
  
hand to the woman, but she clawed at him until he withdrew his hand. Tiny   
  
streaks of red appeared where her nails had raked him. Iaia narrowed her eyes.   
  
Their emerald depths blazed with a serene clarity that was frightening to   
  
behold.  
  
"False affection is blood, sweet, but it dries and crusts like stale apple   
  
pie. Do you like apple pie? Amazonia will learn the truth about her lord, oh   
  
yes, oh yes. I can see the blood." Angrily, Mathus raised his hand to strike   
  
the young princess of Titan. Iaia giggled and shied away, her eyes once more   
  
wild. Mathus lowered his hand slowly.  
  
"Not from you, my young princess. She won't learn it from you." Furiously, he   
  
turned and returned to his own chambers, leaving the woman rocking in the hall   
  
and giggling.  
  
***  
  
Dean leaned toward the girl sitting next to him and smiled charmingly. It was   
  
natural for him to be in the spotlight, being a star suited him. In his white   
  
button up shirt and green slacks, his lean frame lounging casually in his   
  
chair and his deep green jacket hung on the back of his chair, passing girls   
  
commented on how he was the image of "cool". His blonde hair hung perfectly   
  
around his ears and eyes, bringing accent to his crystal blue eyes and white   
  
teeth.  
  
"Castor, I'm having a party tonight on the beach. Why don't you come?" She   
  
breathed, her excitement evident in her dancing eyes. Castor smiled. He knew   
  
what kind of party she meant...lots of girls, trying to impress him. He   
  
shrugged casually and flashed a smile, causing her to blush and giggle.  
  
"I'll see if I can make it." The girl blushed even more and Dean looked around   
  
the lunchroom. He soon caught sight of Erica, surrounded by her typical group   
  
of admiring males. She smiled at him and waved, and Dean noticed a few   
  
crestfallen faces in her crowd. He sighed. No one seemed to understand that he   
  
and Erica were just good friends, not a couple. It made friendly flirting a   
  
lot more difficult.   
  
"Is this seat taken?" Erica questioned, gazing down at Dean. With a coy smile,   
  
he motioned for her to sit beside him. A dozen pairs of hands reached out to   
  
pull a chair over for Erica. She smiled cutely at her followers before   
  
daintily sitting herself beside Dean. She put her tray on the table beside   
  
Dean's, as cast him a look of distaste. His lunch consisted of fries, soda,   
  
cookies and a bag of chips. "I'm ashamed of you, Castor. So completely   
  
unhealthy!" Erica cried in distress, taking a bite of her apple. Her tray   
  
sported water, milk, salad and a dinner roll.  
  
"I don't see what's wrong with it." Dean replied with a charming smile and a   
  
shrug. Erica cast him a sly look before gazing about her with wide eyes,   
  
innocently taking in the crowd of admirers that stood around herself and Dean.   
  
"My, it certainly has gotten crowded around here, hasn't it?" she twittered,   
  
smiling blandly at the sea of faces.  
  
"It is the price we pay." Dean joked, putting his arm around her shoulders.   
  
She laughed. "I'm disheartened that you find our plight so amusing. I makes   
  
spending time with my dearest so difficult." He teased.  
  
"Does it? Well, I'm no easy catch, you know." Erica teased back lightly,   
  
taking another delicate bite of her apple before rising. "Perhaps I will let   
  
you ponder our difficulties by yourself." She rose to move to another table.   
  
Dean let out a hearty laugh as she left, noting the angry glances some of his   
  
female admirers were giving Erica.  
  
"She's such a nasty little tease." The girl across the table pouted, jealousy   
  
tainting her voice.   
  
"And you wouldn't say the same about yourself or Dean?" A new voice   
  
questioned. The girl looked up at Cecelia and blushed in embarrassment.  
  
"Cece! Castor is not a tease, he's a gentleman..." she argued, stumbling over   
  
her words slightly as Cecelia rolled her eyes and sat down beside Dean.   
  
Standing behind her and trying to look small was a new girl, wearing the   
  
slightly different attire of a first year student.   
  
"A gentleman? I've never heard him called that before." Cece teased, taking a   
  
fry from Dean's tray.   
  
"Ouch, Cece. You're harsh." Castor placed his hand over his heart in mock   
  
pain. The girl standing behind Cecelia smiled in amusement. Dean caught sight   
  
of her. "Are you going to introduce me to your friend?"   
  
Cecelia swallowed her fry and waved Tien around to stand beside her. "This is   
  
Tien Sao, a transfer student that just arrived today. I'm showing her around.   
  
Tien, meet Dean Castor. Careful, he's vicious."   
  
Dean looked at the girl and smiled his most charming smile and took her small   
  
tan hand in his own. With her dark, silky hair, obsidian eyes and deep brown   
  
skin, she was obviously different than any of the girls in the school. Short   
  
and full figured, Dean found himself unexplainably attracted to this silent   
  
beauty.  
  
"Charmed, I'm sure." He gave her a winning smile. "And disregard anything Cece   
  
might say. I'm just normal guy, I don't bite unless on request." Tien pulled   
  
her hand from his grasp and looked at the floor.  
  
"I'm glad to meet you, Mr. Castor." Tien replied quietly, her voice as always   
  
polite.  
  
"May I have more fries?" Cecelia asked, reaching for the food. Dean waved her   
  
hand towards it in a gesture of compliance. "Tien? Want some fries?" The girl   
  
contemplated the offer a moment, eyeing the fries hungrily. She wrapped her   
  
arms around her waist.  
  
"Perhaps not." Dean remarked, noting her actions. "You'll want to watch that   
  
soft figure of yours, Tien. With a little effort, you could look like a   
  
goddess."  
  
Cecelia stopped eating long enough to look at him in shock. Tien bit her lip   
  
and hugged herself tighter, staring intently at the ground.   
  
"I can't believe you just said that, Castor!" Cecelia burst out, throwing her   
  
fry at him. "That's so cruel." Tien might have been strange and discomforting   
  
to be around, Cecelia conceded, but she would not tolerate Dean making such   
  
remarks.   
  
"I only meant..." he began to protest, as though just realizing what he had   
  
implied.  
  
"No, it's quite understandable, Mr. Castor." Tien interrupted softly, a hint   
  
of reproach in her gentle voice. "Miss Cecelia, I'm sorry to intrude, but   
  
would it be all right if we continued our tour now? I can go without lunch   
  
today." Cecelia nodded and rose, casting a look of 'see what you've done now?'   
  
at Castor before leading Tien out o the cafeteria.  
  
Dean watched them go, absently picking as his fries, his thoughts still   
  
focused on the new girl. He hadn't meant to offend, he was just teasing. He   
  
sighed. Some people couldn't take a joke. Still, there was something about the   
  
way Tien had looked at him that made him feel...  
  
"Castor, what's wrong? Don't be mad at Cece, she just doesn't understand." A   
  
girl beside him pleaded, placing her hand on his knee. Dean looked at the   
  
girl's pretty green eyes and trim body and smiled again. Taking her hand in   
  
his own, he placed it on his chest in an over-dramatic fashion.  
  
"Nothing's wrong. I was just so stricken by your beauty that I was rendered   
  
speechless for a moment." She giggled at his cliqued flirting and they went   
  
back to enjoying their lunch.  
  
***  
  
Queen Regina sat upon her cold seat of stone and oversaw the throne room with   
  
a haughty expression. The decision to overthrow the Upsilon Andromedae system   
  
and all of its sub-components had been decreed only a few days prior, and   
  
already she was busy conjuring up Shadows to serve their purpose. Her minions   
  
were loyal and powerful, but dull and without personality. They needed bodies   
  
to inhabit before they became anything more than mindless droids. Regina   
  
prided herself on her artistic tastes, and personalities were as artistic as   
  
she could get. She would be happiest when she and her sisters had conquered   
  
their first few planets and had more of a kingdom to rule. It had been a rare   
  
pleasure when the sisters discovered Lord Mathus nearly frozen on the surface   
  
of Titan. No one questioned where he had arrived from or why he was on their   
  
moon. With her dark magic she managed to keep him alive and taint his mind to   
  
serve the three. He became the first addition to the Gorgon's kingdom, and   
  
Regina fawned on him like a personal pet, as an inventor might fawn upon their   
  
greatest creation. Regina's thoughts dwelt on the handsome man often. She felt   
  
his presence beside her throne and turned.  
  
"Lord Mathus, what brings you here?" she demanded, though by far she didn't   
  
mind him joining her side.  
  
"My Queen, I'm afraid to report that Princess Amazonia has run off." Mathus   
  
said gravely, locking his intense hazel eyes on the queen's. He noted with   
  
satisfaction the flash of anger in the queen's eyes. "I tried to stop her, but   
  
she said she could not wait to taste the battle, and went to conquer a planet   
  
in the system."  
  
Regina's eyes flashed with anger and her fists clenched hard enough that her   
  
nails began to draw blood. The commanding posture of a queen quickly turned   
  
rigid and Regina spoke through clenched teeth. "Thank you, Mathus, for   
  
reporting. I will handle the situation from here." Lord Mathus knelt before   
  
his queen and took her delicate hand in his own. With seductive grace, he   
  
kissed its palm.  
  
"Of course, my lady. Anything to please you."  
  
***  
  
Cecelia sighed as she led Tien across the campus towards the dorm rooms. The   
  
girl had wished to see her new home and Cecelia wasn't in the mood to deny   
  
her. After their incident with Castor, Cecelia found herself ashamed to have   
  
let this strange young woman be exposed to the not-so-elite part of TQ. Tien   
  
had remained silent the entire time after leaving the cafeteria, and stared   
  
demurely at the ground as Cecelia walked before her.  
  
"Look, I'm really sorry about Castor. He's just a hot-headed prick, when you   
  
get right down to it." Cece apologized for what seemed like the hundredth   
  
time. Tien remained silent, but from a sideways glance back at the girl   
  
Cecelia could see a partial smile. They walked along the beachside of the   
  
campus towards the back doors of the girl's dormitory. As they approached the   
  
doors, Cecelia took out a small plastic card key similar to those used in   
  
hotel rooms. She handed it to Tien and pulled out an identical one of her own   
  
to demonstrate with. "After 10 p.m., the doors are locked so you'll need your   
  
key. Don't lose that, put it in your wallet or someplace safe. The system   
  
works just like it would at a hotel, run the card through the identification   
  
machine and the doors will open."  
  
Tien nodded and took the key from Cecelia, tucking it away in her uniform.   
  
Cecelia pulled open the doors and led the girl silently up the stairs to her   
  
room, occasionally checking against Tien's information sheet to make sure she   
  
had the address correct.  
  
"Here's your dorm. I'm not sure who your roomie is, but it says you're sharing   
  
with...well, it doesn't say, actually. Huh. It should." Cecelia frowned,   
  
glancing again at the sheet of paper in her hand. With a shrug, she stood back   
  
to give Tien the honors of opening her new home. Tien ran the key through the   
  
lock and the door swung open. To the girls' surprise, a figure sat demurely on   
  
the bed reading a magazine. Tien's black eyes widened in shock.  
  
"Hello Tien. I told you I'd be keeping in touch."  
  
"Miss Astraea!" Tien exclaimed, both embarrassed and glad to see the woman.   
  
"What are you doing here?" Astraea grinned and swung her legs off the bed,   
  
setting the magazine beside her.  
  
"I'm your new roomie...kinda. I wanted you out of any possible danger, so I   
  
signed up as your roomie so that no negative energies would be exposed in   
  
here." She looked over Cecelia critically, and the third-year shrunk away from   
  
that unnerving stare that Tien had mastered only earlier that day. "Well, come   
  
in you two, shut the door. I see you brought Sailor Scorpius with you."  
  
"Her name is Miss Cecelia LeGruin, Miss Astraea." Tien offered helpfully.   
  
"Oh no, you're that one Tien was telling me about w 


	4. Thread 4

The sand of Earth 314 blew angrily through the intruder, trying in vain to   
  
destroy that which was determined to conquer it. The biting winds and sharp   
  
sands passed right through the woman. Amazonia had left herself insubstantial   
  
so as to avoid the harsh climate of her new planet. She looked around in   
  
annoyance. When Mathus has said it was a backwater planet, he hasn't been   
  
kidding. In tones of yellow and brown, the planet already seemed dead.   
  
Amazonia growled irritably. She needed to find a city, a building, a *person*   
  
to destroy. The winds died down enough to allow the faint shadow of a city to   
  
rise like an enchanted cobra from a crater basket. With a smile of   
  
satisfaction, she dematerialized and moments later appeared completely within   
  
the city walls.  
  
"At last." She smiled cruelly, eyes agleam with demonic lust. From the sheath   
  
resting on her hip, she drew her favorite dagger, gleaming bright silver in   
  
the sunlight. With a loving caress, she ran her fingers along the sapphire   
  
facets of the large gem inset in the hilt. She eyed the city streets, traffic   
  
scurrying by and not paying notice to the stranger standing in the street.   
  
Taking her dagger firmly in her grasp, she knelt and buried it hilt-deep in   
  
the loose sand of the street. Concentrating for a moment, she released her   
  
venom into the ground. The earth split from the force, cracking in a spiderweb   
  
through the streets. The startled screams of people filled Amazonia's ears   
  
with their melody.   
  
"Beautiful..." Amazonia purred as a building nearby sank with a roar into the   
  
split earth. The quake didn't bother her and she walked as smoothly as if she   
  
were on ice. People were frantically running and stumbling past her as the   
  
violent quakes threw them to their feet. She could see that they were   
  
attempting to reach the crater wall for protection, but it wasn't in her mind   
  
the let them go so easily.  
  
"Come on! Hurry, or you won't make it to safety!" a passing man shouted over   
  
the din, taking her arm in an attempt to drag her with him. Amazonia narrowed   
  
her eyes coldly.  
  
"Don't touch me." She said with murderous calm. There was a hideous snap, and   
  
the man shrieked in horror as he looked at the ragged, bleeding stump where   
  
his harm had been. Amazonia held the missing article in her hand, examining   
  
where she had broken it from his body. The break was mostly clean, and   
  
bleeding plenty. From the corner of her eye she saw the man stumbling away in   
  
fear, clutching his bleeding arm desperately. A few people who had witnessed   
  
the encounter were hurrying him along, casting nervous glances back at the   
  
violent woman standing calmly in the street.  
  
"Where are you going?" Amazonia called sweetly, bending to rip her dagger from   
  
the ground. Immediately, the ongoing quake stopped. A muffled wail arose from   
  
the people on the streets, and the man's eyes widened with terror as he   
  
watched her. Breaking free of his supported, he stumbled quickly away from her   
  
but in one fluid toss of her wrist he found the dagger had ripped through his   
  
chest. The last thing his saw as he slumped to the ground was the clean,   
  
shining weapon buried in the rock wall before him.  
  
Amazonia knelt by the corpse and ran her fingers through the sticky hole in   
  
his chest. She inhaled the metallic scent of blood and death and happily   
  
brought her fingers to her lips, sucking on the thick red blood that ran down   
  
her palm and pooled around herself and the man. "Sweet..." she crooned softly,   
  
her eyes closed in bliss. She lingered there for a moment, reveling in the   
  
tenderness of the days first kill. Slowly, she took her dagger from the wall   
  
and turned to her audience, only to find they had fled. A smirk crossed her   
  
face. "Time to go hunting..."  
  
People were running. All they could do was keep running. They were afraid.   
  
They were afraid of the desert, which loomed before them with its dangerous   
  
winds. They were afraid of the city, which had crumbled and held the terrible   
  
woman, who searched hungrily for them. They were afraid of the sky, which had   
  
begun to crumble and fall with burning rain. Wails rose in terrible gales,   
  
mingling horribly with the roaring winds beyond the crater walls and the   
  
hissing of the fiery rain. The vile scent of scorched flesh and blood filled   
  
the humid air. Tira ran like the others, not daring to glance back. Her long   
  
braids clung to each other, matted together with grit, blood and sweat. Death   
  
filled her nostrils with its putrid presence. People scrambled over one   
  
another as they attempted to race into the screeching winds of the desert. Far   
  
better a death in a familiar land than a death by this heartless invader.   
  
Tira risked a glance over her shoulder as she climbed up the rocky crater   
  
wall. There was the horrible beauty, her dagger held high as she directed the   
  
flaming rain towards the waves of people. Pain shot through Tira's body as her   
  
frantic kinsmen treaded upon her. With a grunt, she felt herself losing her   
  
grip on the rock. She tumbled down through the masses, towards the enemy.   
  
Loose gravel ripped at her body and clothing, punching through her side and   
  
arms and bringing dark blood to the surface. Feet trampled over her hair, no   
  
one bothered to help the young teen that fell away from the crowd. She rolled   
  
to a stop at the bottom of the crater and at the feet of Amazonia. A small   
  
river of blood trickled down her forehead and into the crooks of her eyes,   
  
partially blinding her.   
  
"Well, at least one of you stayed to keep me company. I was so sad that   
  
everyone ran away," Amazonia drawled above the fallen girl, eyeing her   
  
hungrily. "When all I wanted to do was have a little fun!" her boot met   
  
soundly with Tira's side and the teen cried out in pain, rising partially from   
  
her laying position on the ground. Through a haze of red, Tira saw the bodies   
  
of men, women, children and pets lining the fallen streets where Amazonia had   
  
left them. Shakily, she drew herself into a sitting position and glared up at   
  
the woman.  
  
"Who are you? Why are you here?" She demanded, her voice cracking with the   
  
dust that caught in her throat.   
  
"I am Amazonia, second sister in the Gorgon Trio." Amazonia crowed, placing   
  
the tip of her dagger under Tira's chin and lifting her face to look at her.   
  
"And now, I am your sovereign, unless I decide to kill you first." Tira's eyes   
  
flashed, causing Amazonia to chuckle. It was a heartless sound that made the   
  
teen's blood curdle in her veins. "You don't like the sound of that, I see.   
  
That's such a shame. I should think you would be grateful that I've let you   
  
live this long, child. You amuse me. But I don't appreciate ungrateful   
  
servants!" she pressed her dagger into Tira's throat. Blood began to well out   
  
from the wound, and the girl's eyes rolled back into her head. Fighting   
  
unconsciousness, she managed to spit at the woman's feet. The blade dug deeper   
  
into her flesh.  
  
"Amazonia!" a curt feminine voice barked. The pressure of the blade lessened.   
  
Tira took a shaky breath and dared a glance at her savior as blood rushed to   
  
her head, blackening her sight rapidly. Behind Amazonia stood another woman.   
  
She looked exactly like Amazonia, only her hair hung to her ankles in waves.   
  
Amazonia let her captive drop, finally in the bliss of unconsciousness.   
  
"Regina." She sneered at her sister. She tucked her dagger away in its sheath.   
  
The fire rain ceased at once, as did the tremors that still shook the ground   
  
slightly.   
  
"I can't believe you did this without my consent!" Regina fumed. Amazonia   
  
shrugged lazily. "What were you thinking? You're crazy. We are not yet ready   
  
for battle."  
  
"But sister dear, I have done you a great deed." Amazonia responded politely,   
  
her eyes agleam. "Your Shadows are not powerful enough to fight without   
  
vessels. Here, I have captured an entire planet of vessels for you to use."   
  
She waved an arm vaguely at the destruction she had wreaked. Regina   
  
reluctantly cast her eyes to the sight.   
  
"This is true." She conceded, still refusing to let her anger subside   
  
completely.  
  
"Of course it is." Amazonia purred, wrapping her arm around her sister's waist   
  
affectionately. "I wanted to make you happy. I began the tirade earlier than   
  
planned as a surprise to you. Now, we have already begun to expand our   
  
kingdom. This planet will bow to our greater will without question, after the   
  
lesson that I have taught them. We can begin our conquest of the Upsilon   
  
Andromedae system, and after that, the rest of the galaxy. Then the universe.   
  
This is what we wanted! Don't be angry with me."  
  
"You just want blood." Regina scowled, narrowing her eyes at her sister. "It   
  
will destroy you someday. I won't save when it happens." Something, it may   
  
have been hurt, flitted momentarily behind Amazonia's eyes.   
  
"If that's the way you want it." She at last replied, letting go of her   
  
sister's waist. Regina looked around at the city, which was now a wasteland of   
  
blood and fire. She smiled at her sister in an almost affectionate way.  
  
"You certainly are thorough, but did you have to make such a mess?" she asked.   
  
"Come, let us take the dead back home. I have enough Shadows to occupy them."   
  
She began to pool her dark essence into a black ball in her hand. Taking   
  
careful aim, she pointed her finger at the mess of corpses. Transparent black   
  
tendrils oozed from the ball, wrapping themselves around the lifeless forms.   
  
Thousands of tendrils roamed the city, latching themselves onto the scent of   
  
death, creating a dark web through the city streets.   
  
"This one too." Amazonia demanded, nudging Tira's limp body with her foot. The   
  
girl groaned but did not move. Queen Regina frowned.  
  
"She's not dead. What use have we for her?"   
  
"I want her." Amazonia replied coldly. "She's mine now. Take her too." With a   
  
shrug, Regina sent one final tendril to wrap itself around the gypsy girl's   
  
body.  
  
"Fine then. Let us go." The sisters faded out of existence once again, and   
  
those that had been wrapped in the Dark Magic also eased out. The city was   
  
empty once again. Those people watching from the crater walls knew that this   
  
was the beginning of their Hell on Earth. There was nothing to be done but   
  
wait for the return of their invaders.  
  
***  
  
Every television in the school was turned to the news. The hallway speakers   
  
were tuned to the reports. It was impossible to escape the horrors that poured   
  
out through the speakers.  
  
"Today there was an attack on Earth 314. Facts are still hazy, but satellites   
  
in the area have sent back images of destruction befalling the entire planet.   
  
No one knows the casualty rate at the moment, but it is estimated to be in the   
  
thousands already. The planet has undergone terrible damage and it is feared   
  
that it might collapse entirely. Rescue ships are currently being sent to   
  
retrieve any survivors, but there is something in the atmosphere that is   
  
preventing entry to the planet's surface..." the reports droned on, each   
  
report vague but filled with the terror of the attack. For once, the entire   
  
academy was silent with the news. Some cried, others remained in shocked   
  
silence.  
  
Xi paced, refusing to let emotional heartbreak bring visible tears to her cold   
  
grey eyes. The rest of her class had their eyes fixed upon the television   
  
screen, which displayed the horrible images transmitted by the satellites.   
  
There was her home, the yellow haze of the atmosphere charred black and red.   
  
Her home...home...  
  
"Miss Lan, would you please be seated?" the teacher gently said. It sounded   
  
like a request, but Xi knew it to be a command. Well, too bad. With a glare,   
  
she spun on her heels and walked briskly from the classroom. The teacher,   
  
sensing something deeper, was not unkind and let her go without a fight. Her   
  
hurt quickly boiled into anger as she went through the mostly empty halls. Her   
  
ears were filled with the reports. A strike of terror, an impending war,   
  
destruction...words of foreboding doom floated through the air. Xi brushed   
  
them off, focusing instead on her own anger as she made her way across the   
  
campus lawn to the beach.   
  
The sun sparkled beautifully on the clear green water as it ebbed and flowed   
  
across the white sand. Xi found herself hating the fact that it was so pretty.   
  
Nothing deserved to be pretty. She kicked a pebble into the water angrily.   
  
"Damn them. Damn them all!" she snarled. Her mother...her father...Tira...how   
  
dare they? How dare they destroy her home? How dare they kill those close to   
  
her? How dare they?  
  
"You used to live there, didn't you?" a voice asked from behind. Xi whirled   
  
around to see Astraea lounging on the grass above the beach line. She watched   
  
Xi carefully over her yellow glasses, and the teen found it impossible to read   
  
the expression in her red eyes. Xi scowled.  
  
"What are you doing here?" she demanded irritably, wishing to be alone.   
  
"Vela--"  
  
"Don't you call me that." Xi snapped. "I listened to your bull the other day   
  
because I felt compelled to. I don't have to take it anymore."   
  
Astraea sighed and ran a hand through her red-streaked hair while she looked   
  
up into the crystalline sky. After a moment, she focused her gaze once more on   
  
the irritable student. "I understand how you feel. It's not fair, about your   
  
home."  
  
Xi rolled her eyes. "No shit, Sherlock." She muttered. "Go away."  
  
"No." Astraea replied simply. Xi scowled again, and walked away down the   
  
beach. She didn't want to be around anyone. Astraea watched her walk a few   
  
paces before calling out to her. "You could have stopped it. You could have   
  
saved everything, and none of this would have happened." Xi stopped in her   
  
tracks. The gentle crash of the waves by her feet was the only sound that   
  
filled the distance between the two women. Ever so slowly, Xi turned to the   
  
Guardian.  
  
"What do you mean?" Their eyes locked.  
  
"You could have stopped it all. If the entire division was gathered, then none   
  
of this would have happened." Astraea spoke smoothly and seriously. "This is   
  
exactly what the Senshi were reborn to defend against. You must find the   
  
remaining three soldiers if you have any desire at all to keep other planets   
  
from befalling the same fate, you must accept your role."  
  
Xi remained in angry silence, Astraea's words ringing a taunting truth in her   
  
mind. She set her gaze to the watery horizon, and Astraea remained thankfully   
  
silent. Thoughts sped through the teen's mind. She felt she should have done   
  
something to protect those she loved, perhaps it was true that she was senshi.   
  
Then again, perhaps it was only natural to wish to defend something so much.   
  
Lulled by the rhythmic splash of the sea, it took a few moments for the voice   
  
to register.  
  
"Xi? Xi, are you all right?" Morgan stood on the shore where Astraea had been   
  
sitting. The Guardian had disappeared, and Xi wondered just how long she had   
  
been standing on the beach, her mind whirling as she watched the water.   
  
Morgan's eyes held a look of deep concern and she took a step onto the sand.   
  
There was a sharp intake of breath from Xi and her eyes widened. Morgan noted   
  
the expression and stepped towards the girl, genuine concern painted on her   
  
face. Without a word, Xi grabbed her arm in a steel grip. "Xi?? What's wrong?   
  
Ow, you're hurting me..."   
  
"Come with me." Xi said, dragging the other second year student across the   
  
campus with her. In her eyes, the green glow surrounding Morgan was   
  
unmistakable. Morgan stumbled behind her friend's long, steady strides.   
  
"Where are we going?" Morgan pleaded. Xi didn't respond immediately, instead   
  
ragging her back into the academic wings through the third year halls. Her   
  
ears were closed to the news reports that still droned over the intercom. She   
  
threw open the door to a classroom, and all heads turned to stare. Morgan   
  
stood limply behind the firm Xi, looking ashamed while the latter looked   
  
menacing.   
  
"Cecelia." Xi spoke sharply. The lavender haired girl met her eyes and slowly   
  
rose from her seat.  
  
"Miss LeGruin..." the professor began to protest, but Cecelia gave a charming   
  
smile.  
  
"I'll return in a moment, ma'am."   
  
"Yes, of course." Cecelia strode from the room into the hallway and looked   
  
steadily at Xi.  
  
"Well?" she asked, folding her arms across her chest and looking down at the   
  
younger teen.  
  
"Tien said that Dean had it as well. Who is he?" Xi demanded.   
  
"You're not going to start that whole thing again, are you? Listen, I'm not   
  
getting involved. It's all childish nonsense."   
  
"We're gathering. Every last one of us." Xi growled, her eyes narrowing   
  
dangerously. Cecelia turned her head away and started to go back into the   
  
classroom, but Xi flung Morgan into her. The girl stumbled and looked up at   
  
Cecelia, rubbing her arm where Xi had gripped her.  
  
"Hello, my name's Morgan O'Claire. Are you a friend of Xi's, I take it?" She   
  
asked, completely confused.   
  
"I don't believe Xi is capable of having friends." Cece drawled icily.  
  
"You see the auras as plainly as I do." Xi snapped, ignoring Morgan's friendly   
  
attempts. "You heard the reports. That's my home they destroyed."  
  
"Then I'm sorry for your loss." Cecelia responded. Xi lunged for her and threw   
  
the older girl against the wall. She pinned Cecelia's arms at her sides with   
  
amazing strength for one so scrawny. Xi's eyes blazed and she shook her   
  
captive.  
  
"Damned if you're *sorry*. We're going to stop this, once and for all. If you   
  
don't want to be part of the team, who gives a fuck? I'm the leader, according   
  
to Astraea, and I'm telling you, *commanding* you, to bring me to Dean." She   
  
gave Cecelia another rattling shake.  
  
"Xi! What's gotten into you?" Morgan cried, struggling to free Cecelia from   
  
her friend's grip. Neither of the girls answered the redhead's pleas. At last,   
  
Cecelia nodded, and Xi released her.  
  
"He's in class." Cecelia said, starting down the hall. Xi followed her.  
  
"Come on Morgan." Xi called. Confused, curious, and slightly worried, Morgan   
  
trotted after the two girls. Cecelia paused outside another classroom. Over   
  
the tall girl's shoulder, Xi could see that the television was turned to news   
  
of the attack, like everyone else. Cecelia opened the door and stepped inside.   
  
Xi and Morgan stood in the doorway as Cecelia made her way to the professor's   
  
desk. She whispered some words to the teacher, glancing around the classroom   
  
as she spoke. There was a little debate between the two, but at last the   
  
teacher nodded. Cecelia smiled.  
  
"Miss Johannson, Mr. Castor, please come see me." The professor called. Dean   
  
and Erica exchanged glances and slowly rose, approaching the desk cautiously.   
  
Cecelia smiled encouragingly at them. There was a little more conferencing,   
  
and at last Cecelia ushered her two friends out into the hall, where Xi and   
  
Morgan were waiting.  
  
"Are you satisfied now, Xi?" Cecelia demanded. Xi set her eyes to the other   
  
third year students and looked over them critically.  
  
"Grey and pink. Glad you found the her," she nodded at Erica. "so we won't   
  
have to look for the final one." She muttered before looking at herself,   
  
Morgan and Cecelia. "Purple, green and red. Let's go find Tien." She headed   
  
off down the hallway towards the first year wing.  
  
"Cece, what's going on?" Erica whispered as the other four slowly followed   
  
after the girl.   
  
"You really don't want to know." Cecelia sighed.   
  
"Is this the same Tien you introduced to me yesterday?" Dean asked eagerly.   
  
"Yes. This time, try to be nice and keep your mouth shut?" Cecelia asked.   
  
Retrieving Tien wasn't as difficult, and Xi let Tien lead the group back to   
  
her dorm. Dean tried to follow behind the short first year, but a glare from   
  
Xi kept him beside Erica and Cece. Morgan tugged at Xi's arm.  
  
"Xi, talk to me," She said quietly. "What's going on? You don't look well."  
  
"I'm fine, Morgan." Xi replied steadily. She almost smiled. "Sorry for making   
  
you worry, but there is something that we all need to discuss." She didn't say   
  
anything else. Tien led the group up the stairs to her dorm room and opened   
  
the door. On the bed sat Astraea. She looked up.  
  
"Well, I'm glad you all decided to come." Her eyes peered over her sunglasses   
  
and she silently counted the figures attempting to squeeze into the small   
  
room. "All of you? I'm impressed Xi. You were quick in collecting the entire   
  
division."  
  
"What's going on here?" Castor demanded. Astraea slowly rose from the bed.   
  
"Ah, Draco. You ask more questions than you used to." She put a hand on his   
  
shoulder, but he shrugged it off.  
  
"Who are you? What did you call me?" Astraea chuckled.  
  
"Come." She cried, ushering the students out the door. "I have my van   
  
downstairs. We must take a ride. I'll explain to you in the car."  
  
"We're taking a trip? This will be fun!" Erica giggled, skipping out after the   
  
woman. Dean shoved his hands in his pockets and followed. Morgan cast a glance   
  
at Xi before she too went through the door. Tien, Cecelia and Xi remained in   
  
the room for a moment more.  
  
"Miss Xi, Miss Cecelia, it's nice to see you again." Tien said, looking at the   
  
ground.   
  
"This is all ridiculous." Cecelia scoffed.   
  
"We'll see." Xi replied coolly before sweeping out of the small dorm room.   
  
Tien scurried behind her. After a few more moments, Cecelia at last followed   
  
the rest of the group out the door. 


End file.
